164 THE COMPLETE GRAZIER. BOOK I. 



point out its limitations. As already mentioned, one of the most pro- 

 minent of these is the fact that only on land capable of producing a 

 good crop for mowing could it possibly answer, and this at once places 

 a large proportion of British land beyond the pale of the discussion. 

 Then cornes the question of labour, and every one knows that one of 

 the chief causes of the steady but constant increase in permanent 

 pasture has been the determination evinced by farmers to cut down the 

 labour bill. In many districts farms can be found which used to 

 employ ten men and now can only boast of the services of two or three. 

 We hear much of the attraction of towns and the " rural exodus," but 

 the economy which low prices have forced on farmers has probably 

 been the moving force in the lamentable depopulation of the country 

 side. At any rate, the men have gone and wages have risen, rendering 

 the adoption of the soiling system on thousands of farms quite out of 

 the question. It is, however, our desire to be impartial in our treat- 

 ment of this subject, and we shall find something so say on the other 

 side. We regard soiling in its relation to grazing much the same as 

 we should the use of the spade as opposed to the plough for intensive 

 arable cultivation. It is, in short, the intensive farming of pasture 

 land. The late Mr. G-eorge Simpson of Eeigate had a very considerable 

 herd of Jersey cattle for which he was justly celebrated, and few of 

 those to whom his beautiful cattle were so well known were aware that 

 he only occupied about fifty acres of land. How could he possibly have 

 maintained his numerous head of stock on the old grazing system? 

 Another case was that of Mr. Swan at Lincoln who kept a herd of 

 eighty head of dairy Jerseys near that town on the same acreage as that 

 of Mr. Simpson. In his case, however, the land was all or nearly all 

 under the plough, and was devoted entirely to the growth of green 

 crops and roots, which, of course, had all to be carted to the cattle 

 in the yards. With the close proximity of the city of Lincoln which 

 Mr. Swan served with dairy produce, his heavy expenditure was justi- 

 fied by results. 



When pasture land is constantly mown we have not only to consider 

 the expenditure involved in carting the grass to the yards but also the 

 great additional outlay for heavy manuring which is absolutely necessary 

 for maintaining the land in condition. There is another point also which 

 should not be forgotten. When grass land is mown every year, whether 

 manured or not, there is always a tendency to change in the nature of 

 the herbage. Many of the finer grasses and clovers die out leaving only 

 the coarser kinds, whereas the former flourish when grazed. Skilful 

 graziers frequently argue that first-class old pasture suitable for grazing 

 should never be mown at all for this very reason, and an old Warwick- 

 shire farmer known to the writer, used to advise his sons to " mow your 

 mowing grounds and graze your grazing grounds." Doubtless he had a 

 double reason for giving this advice, and took into consideration the 

 character of the soil itself. The best grazing land, in every sense, would 

 probably be that which was sound in texture, and would therefore take 

 far less injury from " poaching." 



